Thomas Gainsborough’s Showbox

Did you know that the V&A holds in its collections over 2000 British and European oil paintings? They include works by several influential artists, including the renowned 18th century painter Thomas Gainsborough, who was born on this day in 1727.

But despite his success as a portrait painter, Gainsborough preferred to paint landscapes. In the 1780s, towards the end of his life, Gainsborough made a series of landscapes, in oil on glass, to be viewed in a specially constructed ‘showbox’. He used these transparencies as an aid for planning larger compositions and for exploring different effects of lighting.

A contemporary witness described the working of the showbox: ‘The machine consists of a number of glass planes, which are moveable, and were painted by himself [Gainsborough], of various subjects, chiefly landscapes. They are lighted by candles at the back, and are viewered through a magnifying lens, by which means the effect produced is truly captivating, especially the moonlight pieces, which exhibit the most perfect resemblance of nature.’

I work as a Content Editor in the Digital Media department. I love finding interesting stories and unusual objects hidden in the V&A Collections. I blog about all things digital media, with the occasional dash of topical collections-based silliness.

News and Updates

Take a look at what goes on behind-the-scenes in the world’s greatest museum of art and design. From bestselling exhibitions to hidden gems in the collections, learn about our latest projects, ideas and discoveries.